Mary-Jean Lewis as Administrator of the Estate of the late Benjimen Baxter v Hettiaratchi

The case involved Mary-Jean Lewis, as the administrator of the estate of the late Benjamin Baxter, suing Hettiaratchi and others. The dispute centred around the validity of a default judgment obtained by Lewis against the fourth defendant, who contested the service of the statement of claim. The matter was heard in the Supreme Court of Queensland. The fourth defendant argued that he did not recall being served with the statement of claim and sought to have the default judgment set aside. The central legal issues were whether the fourth defendant could rely on his personal recollections to challenge the service of the statement of claim and whether the court had the discretion to set aside the default judgment under the relevant rules of court.

The court examined the rules governing default judgments and the discretion available to set them aside. It considered whether the fourth defendant's personal recollections were sufficient to challenge the service of the statement of claim. The court noted that the fourth defendant had an opportunity to respond to the proceedings but chose not to do so. The judge concluded that the fourth defendant's personal recollections alone were insufficient to challenge the service of the statement of claim. The court also found that the fourth defendant had not demonstrated any exceptional circumstances that would warrant setting aside the default judgment. As a result, the application to set aside the default judgment was dismissed.

The court's decision affirmed the validity of the default judgment obtained by Lewis against the fourth defendant. The court emphasised that personal recollections are not a reliable basis for challenging the service of a statement of claim. The dismissal of the application to set aside the default judgment reinforced the importance of timely and proper service of court documents and the consequences of failing to respond to legal proceedings. The final orders of the court included the dismissal of the fourth defendant's application to set aside the default judgment and the maintenance of the default judgment in favour of Lewis.